


Preston's Play

by EdibleNonsense



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-15
Updated: 2018-01-15
Packaged: 2019-03-05 02:20:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,970
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13378059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EdibleNonsense/pseuds/EdibleNonsense
Summary: Preston gets half the camp to act in his musical and the other half to sit in the audience and watch. Let's hope he finally can pull off a play without something going wrong!





	Preston's Play

“Kids, get over here!”

Gwen’s voice echoed through the camp grounds. As soon as the group gathered close enough for her voice to not carry further than it would need to, she took a deep breath and started in on what she had been struggling to prepare to explain for the last ten minutes.

“Listen. I know that plays and musicals don’t exactly… entertain some of you, but let’s just put aside our individual likes and dislikes, and try to pay attention to Preston. Please? Just for an hour or so?”

Rubbing her temple, she scanned the crowd for any sign of agreement. Nurf and Max seemed like they would rather be anywhere but here, while Nikki, Space Kid, and Dolph had relatively neutral expressions. Gwen knew she could count on at least those three to pay attention to the most exciting bits, although she was worried that was _all_ they would pay attention to. All the other campers were even less enthralled, considering they had to actually act in this- what was it? She couldn’t even remember… musical, apparently. David had done most of the stage designs and helped Preston and the other campers with the lines, so she only had a vague idea of what to expect. Either it was going to be entertaining on purpose, or by accident (much like last time).

Nurf raised his hand.

“Are there going to be snacks? You know, movie snacks. Like popcorn and stuff?”

Trying her hardest not to roll her eyes, she sighed and said, “Yeah, sure. Let me go make it.”

Another hand shot up in the air. “Oh, oh, oh!”

“Yes, Nikki?”

“Are they going to interact with the audience? Like in _Cats_??”

“I don’t… think so? You’ll have to ask Preston for that answer.”

Nikki turned on her heel to run towards the stage, but Gwen stopped her by reaching for her shoulder.

“Yeah, not now. Let’s all just sit in our seats and wait for it to start officially, ok?” she said, ushering them to the logs near the make-shift wooden stage that occupied a decent amount of the campground’s outer area. After she doubled checked everyone had what they needed (including a large amount of popcorn split five ways), she power-walked to the back area of the stage to check with David that all the other campers were close to be ready to start. Today had been a long day, and she was only running on about five hours’ worth of sleep, so the quicker things picked up, the quicker she could relax back in the cabin.

The second she walked backstage, she was hit with a whirl of activity, with Preston running towards Harrison, who was trying his best to tie a small bit of his hair into a low ponytail.

“Do I really need to do this?” Harrison questioned as Preston approached.

“Yes! Fredric’s hair has a very specific style, and I will not sacrifice _any more_ design details just so you ruffians won’t have to dress up!” Whipping his head around, Preston shouted across the back room towards the dressing room.

“Nerris, are you in your Mabel costume yet?”

A small lisping voice shot out of the dressing area’s private curtains.

“Yeah! I just gotta… find a way to get this hat to fit. Stupid bow…”

“Fine!” Preston seemed to be ready to flip out any minute. “David!!”

“Whaaaat?” an altogether too-cheerful-for-this-situation-sounding voice rang out.

“The pirate king costume! Are you ready?”

“For sure, Preston!” Gwen heard a set of footprints coming around the stage’s right side as David walked around the corner with a big grin on his face. He seemed more excited than even Preston was, even though he was dressed in a ridiculous looking white puffy shirt with black pants and boots that almost reached his ankles. It wasn’t like this camp had bottomless funds, so Gwen had to wonder where David found the money to afford three entire 19th century style costumes from. Oh, scratch that, four entire 19th century style costumes.

“Uh, guys?” Neil’s face seemed to be somewhere between concerned and mildly irritated. “This hat won’t fit.”

“Oh, for the love of-! Do I have to do this all by myself?” Preston rushed back across the stage to where Neil was standing in what looked to be a full army costume, but from the olden days.

“You have to wear the hat, you’re the Major General. It’s quite literally _part of the uniform_!” Preston emphasized, loud enough that Neil winced and pulled back.

“Ok, ok, you don’t need to scream.”

“I just-!” Taking a deep breath out, he paused. “I just want this to be _perfect_. Is that too much to ask?”

Afraid to answer that ironically phrased question, David gently took him by the shoulders and pushed him back over to the left side of the backstage area.

“I think that whatever happens will be just fine! Plays are meant to be enjoyed, and as long as you’re enjoying yourself, then you’ll be embracing the true spirit of the theater!”

Putting on a slightly sour face, Preston relented.

“I suppose. As long as nothing else gets messed up, I think it’ll be ok.”

Just as he said that, Ered’s face peeked out from the dressing area.

“Are we, like… ready to go on?”

“Not yet. Are you in your Ruth costume?” Preston seemed to have calmed significantly down.

“Yeah,” she said, starting to put her earbuds back in now that she knew for sure this play wasn’t going anywhere fast.

“Then soon. Very soon! The show must go on.” Holding his head up, Preston walked around to the other side of the curtain.

Taking one earbud out, Ered stared towards the rest of the group with a slightly mystified face.

“Wait, did he mean it’s now or like… later? What…?”

“Just get ready in case. I have literally no clue.” Gwen shook her head. It would be nice to have at least one kid in this camp that wasn’t a spazz on some level.

“Ugh, ok guys, I’m all ready,” Nerris said, walking towards them from the dressing room. She had on an elegant-looking white dress with gloves and a large bonnet on her head. The pink bow keeping the bonnet on was tied in a loose knot, which seemed to be coming undone every time she moved her head.

“Here, Nerris, let me readjust that bow for you-” Gwen started to say.

“Uh-uh, it’s fine! I find that it’s easier to sing and move my head with it like this anyway. I don’t know why Preston chose me to be Mabel, but I guess I’ll just live with it,” Nerris complained, crossing her arms.

“I’m sure you’ll be a great Mabel, Nerris!” David’s voice rang out from across the room.

“I mean, it was between me and Ered, so I just don’t know why he didn’t just go with Ered.” Nerris yanked her bonnet backwards so that her hair was able to pop out in the front.

Ered just shrugged and kept scrolling through her iPod. Across the room, Harrison opened his mouth like he was about to say something, but then just pursed his lips and looked down at his shoes.

Preston’s head popped in through the curtain’s edge.

“It’s showtime, people!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first major scene went off without a hitch. Harrison (as nervous as he was while singing) and Ered (who basically either barely changed her pitch or just ended up speaking many of the singing parts) provided a much-needed introduction to this musical, which was apparently titled “The Pirates of Penzance.” Go figure, Gwen thought. She only knew which campers were involved, but she had no clue what the plot was or why David kept practicing using a thin wooden sword backstage. Preston kept rushing around, rearranging props and other background items so that each scene had a unique feel to it. Gwen had to admit that this whole thing seemed like it certainly took a long time to prepare… and a lot of money to prepare it with. In-between one scene with David telling off Harrison’s character for wanting to leave their pirate ship, Gwen caught him by the arm after he walked backstage in order to ask him a few things.

“Hey, hey, David,” Gwen whispered loudly enough that David heard. “How, uhh, much did all this cost?”

“All of what?” His smile stayed the same, but his eyes began to betray the small bit of panic he felt at being asked that particular question.

“This. The play and costumes and sets? I know we didn’t have those things just lying around out here. Where did it come from?”

“Oh! Don’t worry about that, Gwen! I know it’s all being used in good conscious! No worries.”

Holding onto his elbow as he tried to walk away, Gwen made a bup-bup-bup noise before dragging him back.

“What the hell does that mean? Yeah, I know it’s being used, but I’m asking where the money came from, David.”

“I- I don’t think you should worry about it! I mean, between Parents’ Day and that one other time, Preston’s had very poor luck with his plays and I think he deserved-”

“The money, David. Where did the money come from?” Locking eyes with him like never before, she stared right into his soul.

“I…” he sighed and looked at the ground. “I paid for it all.”

“You? What, how?” When he didn’t answer right away, she whispered, “Oh no…”

“David. Do not tell me you used money, from your paychecks, your _personal_ paychecks, to pay for costumes for a play that’s going to be performed once. At a summer camp. Please, David, tell me you didn’t do that. Please. For your sake.”

He looked right at her and squared his shoulders.

“Listen, Gwen, I know that it may seem crazy, but I don’t mind. I just felt so… bad. Preston keeps trying to put on these big, complex plays - some that he’s written himself!- and it just seems like he never has one successful one. Camp Campbell is a place that helps _all_ campers achieve their goals in whatever they set their hearts on, and by golly, if there’s a camper that’s here for theater camp, then he should get a theater camp! There’s no amount of money in the world that can ever replace the feeling of enjoying something you love. And there’s no amount of money that can replace the feeling of helping a camper who needs something.” Gulping slightly, he kept his eyes trained on hers until she looked away.

“Oh… David… you make it so tough,” she sighed, “but I understand. Just don’t-!” Cutting him off from a delighted outburst, she continued. “Just don’t buy anything else, ok? Not even those little watercolor sets for Dolph or trading cards for Nerris or anything _, understand_?”

“I understand,” David’s smile relaxed into a warmer grin, with the light returning to his eyes. “You shouldn’t worry so much, though, Gwen. Just enjoy the play.”

Gwen found it hard to not let a small grin creep onto her face too. She hadn’t meant to freak out on David, it was just that sometimes she worried whether he was aware of his own needs. He always tended to put the camp before anything else, and he was always so thoughtful, too. It just made her feel even more committed to being the “voice of reason” in a way, if one could call it that. But Gwen never did (well, out loud, anyway.)

Almost as if on a cue, Preston’s brown bob whipped around from the stage’s corner.

“Mabel! Where is Mabel?” His eyes darted around. 

“I’m here, I’m here…” Nerris grumbled as she walked in from the opposite corner, still fiddling with the long ribbons on the bow on her hat.

“No cold feet, right?” Preston declared more than asked.

Nerris shrugged and walked towards the front of the curtain, where Harrison was standing with a burlap bag slung over his shoulder, facing the audience. Noticing that she was waiting to enter on her cue, he shuffled closer so that he could whisper something to both Preston and Nerris, who were standing at the curtain’s edge.

“Hey, Preston, um, what about the other people in this scene? Aren’t there sisters, like, the backup chorus?”

“No, no, we didn’t have enough time to worry about teaching more people lines and Nikki had already said she wasn’t interested in memorizing anything, so this scene is just you and Nerris. Now go,” he hissed, giving a solid shove to both his costumed peers and thrusting them out in the sunlight.

From backstage, Gwen squinted. She wasn’t sure why it seemed to her that Harrison was starting to look less anxious, but he did. His movements were more fluid and natural, instead of restricted and hurried. Something clicked in her mind.

“Preston, just a quick question.”

“Yes, what is it? I’m literally in the middle of something right now.” He bounced on his toes while stretching his neck out enough to be able to see what was going on on-stage.

“Why did you choose who you chose for these roles? I just have to know.”

Eyes and attention still focused on the stage, he sighed.

“Well, I knew from the start that David was going to be the pirate king, due to his exuberant personality, and besides that, that we would need two female actresses for Ruth and Mabel. Not to mention the fact that the only one I thought that fit a young Rex Smith’s looks was Harrison. After that, I had to narrow it down from who wanted to be in the play, and who didn’t.”

“Hmm, I gathered most of that. But I guess what I’m asking is, why did you choose Nerris instead of Ered for Mabel?”

His eyes darted back and forth between the stage and Gwen’s general direction.

“Oh. Well, see… That was between me and someone else! No more details needed.”

“Did Harrison ask for Nerris to be Mabel?”

“No more questions!” He turned and half-walked, half-jogged towards the back door leading outside. For about the third time today, Gwen had to resist rolling her eyes. She just _knew_ that something was up with those two! At least she figured out what the problem was. Meanwhile, out on stage, things were going as well as they could in these circumstances.

Harrison seemed much more content, although he had taken to speaking some of the lines of the songs that he wasn’t quite sure of. Meanwhile, Nerris was doing her best with what she had been given, which was an outfit she didn’t particularly like and a script she didn’t particularly remember. Preston had noticed this and had gone around back and out the door in order to help mirror the action and lines that the two were forgetting. Standing a bit off to the left of the stage, he waved his arms around and mouthed whatever bits were being left out so they could see.

In the audience, there was a clear divide between the campers who cared about what was going on onstage, and those who were half asleep. Nurf was leaning back with his arm folded, while Dolph and Space Kid were both leaning forward with hands under their chins. Nikki was whispering something to Max, with a grin on her face that made Gwen wonder exactly what was being said. Max was nodding slightly, with his eyes closed and head in his hands.

Finally, the scene came to a close with a small bow from both Nerris and Harrison (as wildly signaled by Preston, who was trying his best to get them to pay attention to him.) Scattered applause from about half of the campers echoed through the area of the forest they were sitting in, with David’s energetic clapping drowning out almost everyone else.

“This is the end of Act 1! Please… take this time to refresh and prepare for Act 2. Thank you,” Preston said from his place in the front of the rows, bowing slightly. Everyone sitting on the log seats either got up and started walking towards the mess hall or simply stood up to stretch and started talking to someone. Only David approached Preston, who was keeping an eye on the actors filing backstage.

“Preston, that was amazing! I think that everyone did a great job!”

A hearty smile broke out on Preston’s face.

“Thank you, David! The theater is a cruel mistress, but I believe that I have met her expectations!”

David chuckled and reached down to pat him on the shoulder. “Glad to hear that.”

Walking up behind him, Gwen mumbled, “Perhaps we may want to rethink some of the metaphors we’re using….”

“Um. Gwen. About your earlier question…” Preston raised his finger in an attempt to get her attention. “Listen, I’m not at liberty to tell anyone, but there were some… recommendations made by one of our fellow actors, and I did indeed end up taking perhaps… one of them. Just perhaps.”

“It’s ok, Preston, I understand.”

“Yes, well, I think some actors simply work better together than others, and it’s my duty to do the best I can to… bring them together.”

“Gotcha!”

“And how could I ignore the pleas of someone who was such a centerpiece in this particular musical? It would seem cruel to deprive-”

“Preston. Don’t worry. I got it.”

“And David?”

David’s head perked up. “Yes?”

“I wanted to formally thank you for your help in this production. Without you, I honestly would not have been able to pull this off. It’s much appreciated.”

“Aww, well of course, Preston! I’m so happy you’re enjoying it! That’s really the best ‘thank you’ of all!” Since Preston tended to make his grievances well-known, David felt really touched at how he was so appreciative of his efforts. Being a camp counselor wasn’t always the easiest job, but the most rewarding thing for David was knowing that what he did made a difference, even if the kids only seemed to show their appreciation once in a great while. That still made it all worth it.

“Well… I suppose it’s almost time for our second half. But thank you again, David.” Turning his head towards the stage, Preston hollered, “FIVE MINUTES UNTIL ACT 2!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As expected, Act Two was as equally confusing and amateurly acted as Act One, but this time around, Harrison seemed a lot more focused. Nerris and Neil were equally engaged in their lines (both spoken and sung), which was a great relief for Preston, since he had noticed a slight dip in quality as the first act went on. But he focused, rather, on the big finale. The last scene in a musical always, _always_ , was used to leave a big impression on the crowd, something to remember even after they left the theater. Therefore, he could excuse a little variation in quality as long as the ending set the mood.

Out in the audience, the mood was restless. It turns out that “Pirates of Penzance” was not as well-known as Preston thought, and the multiple plotlines and quietly spoken dialogue led to some campers getting confused about what exactly was happening, plot-wise.

“Who is that? Who is he supposed to be?” Dolph whispered above the noise on-stage.

“I don’t know. Either the main pirate guy or the police guy. David’s playing both of them, so I guess it doesn’t matter, really.” Max rolled his eyes.

“Oh, I thought he was the one pirate dude who left the ship!” Nikki piped up.

“Nah, that’s Harrison,” Max whispered back. “I think.”

“Kids,” Gwen turned around for the fourth time in… however many minutes this scene had been going on. “Please, hush up.”

Sighing, Max leaned back against the seat. Dolph and Nurf stared aimlessly towards the stage, while Nikki squinted at Harrison and rubbed her chin. Pointing her finger at the stage, she started to talk in a normal voice, completely disregarding the prior advice.

“Yeah, I think it is David, because Harrison isn’t-”

“Kids! Hush!” Gwen’s head whipped around and she threw her hands out in the universal ‘WTF’ gesture. “Seriously, I wouldn’t mind being able to concentrate.”

“Yeah, sor-rrrrrry, but this play or whatever is taking way too damn long,” Max hissed. “You said it would be an hour.”

“Yeah, it’s been almost two hours now,” Dolph whined.

“Well, I’m sorry I’m not well-versed enough to know the exact length of every musical on this planet! I had to take a guess, and I gave you a time, so until it’s over, just sit back and shut your yaps!” Turning around, she paused, and looked back. “It’s just… important that we show support to our fellow campers. Sometimes what interests someone else may not interest you, but you have to grit your teeth and do your best to support them. Ok?”

“You sound like David,” Max muttered under his breath, smirking slightly.  

“Max, I swear to God-”

“Hey, can we really be quiet now?” Space Kid said sadly, turning around from his seat next to Gwen in the first row. “I wanna hear how Fredric and the Major General defeat the Pirate King.”

Everyone begrudgingly leaned back and resumed watching the musical.

Space Kid smiled and giggled. “Thank you!”

“Don’t push it,” Max hissed under his breath.  

On stage, Nerris and Harrison were quite thankful for the distraction in the audience, since they were currently in the middle of the finale, which included a mixture of songs from the last act of the musical. Finally, with a flourish, David, Ered, and Neil were on-stage too, and were wrapping up the final scene with a five-part chorus. Preston’s arms were going wild in the front side of the audience, with him trying to indicate exactly what kind of movements he wanted each actor to do. After the final note had been sung, the five bowed with relieved expressions.

Space Kid was the first to applaud, with his gloved hands beating wildly against each other, while standing up and grinning from ear to ear. Gwen gently stood up and clapped too, while Nikki, Nurf, and Dolph all waved their hands above their heads and yelled words of congratulations. Max stayed seated, but whistled loudly with his fingers in his mouth, since he had kind of enjoyed the plot, after figuring out who was who.

Preston made quick work of marching on-stage and bowing for everyone, which set off another round of applause and shouting from the audience. Although it was tough to see under the stage lights, Gwen thought she saw something shine under Preston’s eyes as he bent down and back up again. It went away quickly as he put his hands up to his eyes and wiped his face, bouncing up on his toes slightly. Staring triumphantly out into the crowd, he began to speak.

“I… just wanted to thank you all again. Thank you for attending this musical, and for all the kindness you’ve shown the theater. I’m just so thrilled this went off without a hitch; I never thought… Well, I had a few worries, let’s just say! But again, I must bid you all good day, and show my appreciation once again for a fantastic audience.”

Even more applause and shouting rang out once again, this time congratulating everyone within earshot, since the play was finally over. Gwen felt so proud of all the kids, since she hadn’t really expected they would end up being so supportive. But if there was one thing she learned in her time here, it was to never underestimate the kids at Camp Campbell. You never quite knew what you were going to get.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading this far! I wrote this bit by bit as a warm-up for another fanfic, and somehow it became long enough to publish. I have fond memories of watching the 1983 version of Pirates of Penzance with my mom on VHS tape since it's one of her favorite musicals, and I thought my knowledge of the one musical I'm obsessed with enough to know all the words to would be fun to use in a fanfic about Preston! I also realized that this poor kid never had a play not get interrupted or ruined in the show, so I wanted to write about that. Somehow I got the idea of writing Dad!vid (and Mom!Gwen) with Preston too, since I would love to see someone besides Max have some parental-type encouragement in a fanfic! And hints of Nerrison and Gwenvid are in there as well, since I just couldn't decide what to write about and I like those ships lol. Honestly, this fanfic is all over the place, whoops. Thanks again for reading, comments and criticisms are welcome :D


End file.
